Abstract
This study was conducted to test the association between promoter DNA methylation of α-Adducin (ADD1) gene and the risk of essential hypertension (EH). A total of 150 EH patients and 100 aged- and gender-matched controls were investigated. DNA methylation levels of five cytosine-phosphate-guanine (CpG) dinucleotides on ADD1 promoter were measured employing bisulfite pyrosequencing technology. Our results showed that females have a higher ADD1 DNA methylation than males and a significantly lower CpG1 methylation level is associated with increased risk of EH among them. As for males, a significant association between lower CpG2-5 methylation levels and increased risk of EH was shown. In addition, CpG2-5 methylation was found to be a highly significant predictor for EH among males. In females, CpG1 methylation was considered a predictor of hypertension. No significant correlations were found with biochemical measures, apart from the concentration of aspartate aminotransferase which was inversely correlated with ADD1 CpG2-5 methylation levels among female controls (r = −0.703). These findings highlight that ADD1 methylation may have a contributing role in the pathogenesis of EH with varying implications for both genders.